Excellent food and dedicated volunteers make Thanksgiving meal for the needy a joyful event

Anyone who imagines that eating a Thanksgiving meal at a St. Vincent de Paul Society free dining room is a melancholy affair should visit the dining hall in San Rafael on Thanksgiving Day.

Diners on Thursday tucked into an expertly prepared meal consisting of brined turkey, mashed potatoes with gravy, cranberry sauce, stuffing, fresh steamed broccoli, salad — and for dessert their choice of pumpkin or pecan pie. Freshly cut flowers adorned some of the tables, and diners were serenaded by Kurt Huget, a San Rafael guitarist and singer. Huget kicked off his first set with Jerry Garcia's song, "Ripple."

"You should try the turkey, it's excellent," said Michael Briggs, 55, who said he has been eating Thanksgiving and other meals at the St. Vincent de Paul Society of Marin dining hall in San Rafael since the 1980s.

"The chef they have now is unbelievably good," said Briggs, who is homeless and sleeps in his 1978 Cadillac Coupe de Ville. "It used to be all food from Safeway before. The food has got a lot better."

Fredy Esquival, the chief cook supervising the meal, said he started baking the 35 turkeys used for the meal on Tuesday and arrived at the kitchen Thursday morning at 6 a.m. to begin final preparations.

"I love what I do here," said Esquival, 35, who moved to the United States from the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico with his parents when he was 11. "I like serving the community. That is something I feel blessed to do."

Jay Karutz, an experienced restaurant manager who began overseeing the San Rafael dining room nine months ago, said he expected to serve some 450 people Thursday. With that many people expected for dinner, Karutz said he had a nasty scare last week.

"The chef came to me and said, 'Usually by now we have 100 turkeys or so donated; but so far we only have 10.'"

Karutz responded by sending out emails to loyal supporters and friends of the dining hall appealing for help. St. Vincent De Paul receives no government funding and relies completely on private donations.

"The response has been overwhelming," Karutz said. "We have close to 300 turkeys in our freezer now."

Karutz said the extra meat will be used to bolster the dining hall's ability to provide protein as part of its daily breakfast and lunch menus. The San Francisco Food Bank, which supplies much of the dining hall's food, is able to buy plenty of fresh produce directly from California farmers; but it has a much harder time securing affordable meat and other sources of protein for distribution.

Diners began queuing up early Thursday. At the front of the line were three United States Armed Forces veterans: Albert Ellis, James Maher and Ed Stawski. They chatted while they waited. All three men are homeless, although Stawski, 65, is currently recuperating from a broken back at Pine Ridge Care Center, a skilled nursing home in San Rafael. Stawski broke his back while sleepwalking. Maher, 69, sleeps in his van. Ellis, 60, roughs it outside.

Ellis, who was a cook in the U.S. Navy, said, "I've been coming here five years and feel we're blessed. This is really an excellent meal, as close to home cooking as you can get."

Later, Maher is joined by his wife, Tup Bach Pham, a native of Vietnam. Maher met his wife while serving in the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War. Maher said they became homeless two years ago after they were evicted from their apartment due to hoarding issues. His wife sleeps at a friend's home.

But before anyone could eat Thursday, Father John Surinchak, an Anglican priest with Santa Venetia Healing Ministries, had to say grace. Surinchak is one of the dining hall's regular volunteers. He serves as a volunteer chaplain during lunches there three or four days a week. Surinchak likes to bring a case of sparkling cider to special events.

"They can't have wine here so this is the next best thing," Surinchak said. "One of Jesus' commands was to serve others. That's what I'm doing."

Another longtime volunteer, Karen Feldman of San Rafael, served as a hostess and helped clear tables.

"I know a lot of the regular diners so this is a joyful day for me to participate," said Feldman, who works at the dining hall every Thursday in addition to Thanksgiving and Christmas.

"I'm from the Midwest and I was raised that everybody should have a proper meal," Feldman said. "I take great pride that we're in a county where we can offer people a nice supper on this particular day."

Huget, who has been playing his guitar at St. Vincent de Paul Society events for over a decade, said, "Playing here for these friends is much more satisfying than playing at a nightclub or something."

Huget said he takes the lyric's in "Ripple" to heart. "Sometimes your cup is full. Sometimes your cup is half empty," he said. "Sometimes you're leading, and sometimes you're following."